NEW YORK, NY - CNN announced Sunday that it has begun investigating the identity of a man who the network had claimed in a recent report was a prisoner of the ousted Syrian government, according to The Wrap.
In a story published last week, chief CNN international correspondent Clarissa Ward and her crew, escorted by Syrian rebels, discovered a man hiding under a blanket in what was the “only locked cell” in a “secret prison” at a Syrian air force intelligence base in Damascus.
The man identified himself as a civilian named Adel Gharbal from Homs, and claimed that he had been in solitary confinement for three months. He appeared surprised to learn that Bashar Al Assad’s regime had fallen.
“In nearly twenty years as a journalist, this was one of the most extraordinary moments I have witnessed,” Ward wrote in a post on X.
When asked by CNN’s Anderson Cooper what is known “about this man and how he ended up in the prison,” Ward admitted that “we don’t know that much because you can see from the report, Anderson, that he’s in a deep state of shock.”
However, some concerns have surfaced about the veracity of the report. Click here to read more.
LANSING, Mich - Two bills introduced by Democrats in the Michigan state House aim to empower librarians faced with community challenges against literature deemed improper for children by their parents.
On Wednesday, House Dems brought House Bills 6034 and 6035 were referred to second reading, which means neither bill will likely be discussed during the legislative session that ends Friday, Dec. 13.
The “Public Library Freedom to Read Act” and “District Library Freedom to Read Act” would grant librarians wide discretion to reject book challenges. HB6034 addresses public libraries, which are controlled at a local level, and HB 6035 addresses district libraries, which are governed independently.
The bills would alter the methods by which parents and citizens could “challenge” dubious books, Both bills would seek to put barriers in the way of people who believe that some books do not belong in some sections of the library and request that they be removed. Click here to read more.
WASHINGTON D.C. - The Center Square) – President-elect Donald Trump blasted federal “work from home” policies Monday, calling them “ridiculous” and stirring up pushback from federal employee unions.
“If people don’t come back to work, come back into the office, they’re going to be dismissed,” Trump told reporters during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago.
The issue has been thrust to the forefront in part by the incoming Trump administration’s emphasis on government efficiency, spearheaded by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
But the issue has also gained national attention because Biden administration officials like outgoing Social Security Administrator Martin O’Malley negotiated a deal with union leaders to entrench the policies, keeping telework in place for his 42,000 employees until 2029.
Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union, threatened legal action against the incoming Trump administration if the president-elect tries to upend previously bargained union deals that let federal employees work from home.
"Collective bargaining agreements entered into by the federal government are binding and enforceable under the law,” Kelley said. “We trust the incoming administration will abide by their obligations to honor lawful union contracts. If they fail to do so, we will be prepared to enforce our rights." Click here to read more.
LIVONIA, Mich. (WRKC) - A man who believed he won $30,000 from a scratch-off lottery ticket was shocked to learn he had actually won $300,000.
An unnamed 56-year-old man from Wayne County, Michigan stopped into a Speedway gas station to grab a coffee and scratch-off lottery ticket as part of his morning routine.
"I stopped at the gas station to get coffee and an instant ticket like I have done every day for the past eight years," he said. "I scratched the ticket when I got back to my car, and thought I'd won $30,000. I spent the next half hour looking the ticket over, until I finally went into the store to double check it."
And lucky he did, because the clerk noticed something that the 56-year-old missed.
"After the clerk scanned it, he handed it back to me and told me I didn't scratch off all the zeroes. That's when I realized I'd actually won $300,000. I couldn't believe it!"
The man told Michigan Lottery Connect that he intends on using the money for a new car, his children's college funds, and would invest the rest.
WASHINGTON D.C. - The overwhelming majority of Americans support Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s reforms to the food industry and public health, a new poll reveals.
The issues raised by Kennedy, whom President-elect Donald Trump has chosen to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the next administration, have widespread support among most Americans — including most Republicans and Democrats — according to the latest YouGov poll.
Specifically, almost 8 in 10 American adults said they support requiring nutrition education in federally funded medical schools, while 74 percent support banning certain additives, including dyes, from the nation’s food supply.
Banning food additives has widespread support across the political spectrum, the poll finds, with 74 percent of Democrats and 81 percent of Republicans supporting such a plan.
Likewise, 66 percent of Americans — including 71 percent of Democrats and 66 percent of Republicans — want the federal government to increase restrictions on the use of pesticides in agricultural products.
Banning processed foods in public school lunches is also supported by a majority of Republicans, 66 percent, and Democrats, 68 percent. Click here to read more.
